Auto-rack railroad car vehicle wheel chock

ABSTRACT

An improved vehicle wheel chock for a vehicle restraint system for an auto-rack railroad car which secures a vehicle in the auto-rack railroad car. The vehicle wheel chock is configured to be positioned on a grating adjacent to a tire of the vehicle. The improved vehicle wheel chock includes an improved face-plate.

PRIORITY CLAIM

This application claims the benefit of and priority to U.S. ProvisionalPatent Application No. 61/251,524, filed on Oct. 14, 2009, entitled“IMPROVED AUTO-RACK RAILROAD CAR VEHICLE WHEEL CHOCK,” the entirecontents of which is incorporated by reference herein.

BACKGROUND

The railroad industry employs a variety of auto-rack railroad cars fortransporting newly-manufactured vehicles such as automobiles, vans andtrucks. Auto-rack railroad cars, known in the railroad industry asauto-rack cars, often travel thousands of miles through varying terrain.One typical type of auto-rack car is compartmented, having two or threefloors or decks, two sidewalls, a pair of doors at each end, and a roof.Newly manufactured vehicles are loaded into and unloaded from anauto-rack car for transport by a person (sometimes called a “loader”)who drives the vehicles into or out of the auto-rack car.

One problem with auto-rack cars is the potential for damage to newlymanufactured vehicles which can occur in the auto-rack car due to theunwanted movement of one or more of the transported vehicles notadequately secured in the auto-rack car. Various restraint or anchoringsystems have been developed for securing the vehicles transported inauto-rack cars to prevent movement or shifting of those vehicles duringtransportation. The loader typically operates these vehicle restraint oranchoring systems. One known type of system employs a “tie down”restraint using chains connected to steel runners in the support surfaceof the auto-rack car. A ratchet tool is usually required to secure thesechains taut. Certain types of these known systems utilize winchmechanisms and harnesses which must be fitted over the vehicle tires torestrain movement of the vehicle. These systems are time consuming toproperly install.

To solve these and other disadvantages of such mechanisms, a vehiclerestraint system for restraining vehicles transported on auto-rack carswas developed. This vehicle restraint system is disclosed in detail inU.S. Pat. Nos. 5,312,213 and 5,302,063. This vehicle restraint systemincludes a grating and a plurality of restraints each detachably securedto the grating provided on a support surface of the auto-rack car. Thissystem utilizes four restraints, one associated with each of the fourwheels of a vehicle being transported.

As illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 2A, the restraint or vehicle wheel chock32 of this known system includes a face-plate 34 for alignment with, andrestraining movement of, a tire 40 of an associated wheel 42 of thevehicle 44 positioned on the grating 38. The face-plate 34 is verticallyadjustable to a lower position (shown in FIGS. 2 and 2A), anintermediate position (not shown), and an upper position (shown inphantom in FIG. 2) to provide for different tire sizes. The face-plate34 is attached to a load-transmitting member 36 which is adapted totransfer the load applied to the face-plate 34 to the grating 38. Therestraint 32 also includes a moveable paddle-shaped restraining member39 which contacts the inside surface of the tire to prevent lateralshifting of the tire and thus of the vehicle. The paddle shapedrestraining member 39 is connected to the face-plate 34 such that whenthe face-plate is vertically adjusted, the paddle shaped restrainingmember is vertically adjusted. For several years, this vehicle restraintsystem has been widely employed in auto-rack cars to secure vehicles.

Various problems have developed with this vehicle restraint systemespecially in relation to new types or designs of vehicles such as“cross-over” vehicles and other vehicles with different body andparticularly different fender, molding or trim profiles. For example,cross-over vehicles generally include a truck or SUV-type body mountedon an automobile-type frame. These cross-over vehicles have a highercenter of gravity, a much lower curb weight than conventionalautomobiles and SUV's, and include relatively low fenders, moldings,trim and bumpers (compared to certain trucks, vans and SUVs). Other newvehicles also have relatively low fenders, moldings, trim and bumpers.When such vehicles are loaded in an auto-rack railroad car on thegrating, it has been found that these known vehicle restraints are notadequately holding the vehicles in place or adequately preventing themovement of the vehicles to a minimum desired level of movement. Thislack of restraint occurs, at least in part, because the adjustablemember or face-plate 34 of such above described restraints cannot bemounted or positioned with the face-plate in the intermediate or highestposition because it will or may interfere with or contact the relativelylow bumper, fender, trim or molding of the vehicle as illustrated inphantom in FIG. 2. Vehicle manufacturers want to avoid such contact orpotential contact during the transportation of the vehicles to avoiddamage to the vehicles.

More specifically, it should be appreciated that vehicle manufacturersprovide extremely particular instructions which warn against any contactor engagement between anything in the auto-rack railroad cars and thenew vehicles because the vehicle manufacturers desire to deliver thenewly manufactured vehicles to dealers and their customers in “perfect”condition. Any damage, such as scratches or dents to the fenders,bumpers, moldings, trim or other parts of the vehicle, could prevent orinhibit a customer from purchasing or taking delivery of the vehicle,and generally need to be fixed prior to sale of the vehicle.Accordingly, vehicle manufacturers prefer that the restraint not contactand not come close to being in contact with the fenders, bumpers, trimor moldings of the newly manufactured vehicles being transported. Theface-plate 34 of the above described restraint must accordingly beplaced in the lowest or, at best, the intermediate position whensecuring many presently manufactured vehicles in the auto-rack cars.This causes the face-plate to engage the tire at a lower point on thetire, and accordingly, the vehicle is more likely to be able to jumpover or hop the restraint (as illustrated in FIG. 3) if the vehicle issubjected to sufficient forces.

Even when the face-plate is in the highest or intermediate position,other problems with holding the tire in place often occur, especiallywhere the vehicles do not have locking steering columns. The cause forthese problems is that the face-plate does not securely engage the tireor enough of the tire and the paddle-shaped restraining member 39contacts the side of the tire 40 at too high of a position which allowsthe tire to turn and to be disengaged from the face-plate of therestraint 32 as generally illustrated in FIG. 3A. In certain instances,the vehicle literally “walks out” of this restraint 32 as illustrated inFIG. 3A. This illustration is generally of a photograph taken inside anauto-rack railroad car employing the above described vehicle restraintsystem.

It should be appreciated that each tire of vehicle has a safe zone ofoperation (in front and in back of the tire) for a vehicle restraintsystem. Each safe zone is a somewhat triangular area in front of or inback of the tire. Each safe zone defines the space in which a vehiclerestraint system can operate without the potential for contacting thefenders, trim, moldings or bumpers of the vehicle. For example, safezones 41 a and 41 b for a tire 40 of an automobile are generallyillustrated in FIG. 3B. The above described vehicle restraint systemfunctions outside of those safe zones for many vehicles, as generallyillustrated in FIG. 2A which shows (in phantom) that when the face-plate34 is in the preferred uppermost position, it is outside the safe zone41 a. Therefore, as mentioned above, the face-plate of the restraint 32often needs to be placed in the lowest or intermediate position to staywithin the respective safe zone and prevent damage or potential damageto the fender, trim, molding and bumper of the vehicle.

A related problem which can also cause a vehicle to be more likely tojump over or hop this restraint is that the restraint is sometimes notplaced as close to the tire as potentially possible as illustrated inFIG. 2. One reason for this is that the loaders are in a hurry when theyload the vehicles into the auto-rack railroad cars. When the loaders arein a hurry, they tend to place the restraint in a position close to thetire without substantially maneuvering the restraint to the closestpossible position to the tire. This positioning can sometimes leave asubstantial gap between the restraint and the tire. This gap coupledwith a low face-plate position can allow the vehicle to build up speedcausing the vehicle to hop or jump the restraint.

A similar problem arises because the restraint may need to be positionedor spaced at a distance from the tire because the tire is at a positionon the grating or relative to the grating that does not allow therestraint to be placed in engagement with the tire. The restraint incertain instances is placed up to a distance of three-quarters of aninch away from the tire due to the position of the grating members orrungs relative to the tire and the three sets of locking members of thisrestraint. Again, in such situations, a gap is created allowing thevehicle to more easily hop or jump the restraint. This is alsoillustrated in FIG. 2 where the size of the gap between the tire and theface-plate is approximately half the distance between the rungs of thegrating. This gap problem is compounded because certain vehiclemanufacturers require that certain vehicles be transported with thetransmission in neutral to prevent damage to the vehicle (such as damageto the transmission of the vehicle). In neutral, the transmission doesnot stop the vehicles from moving.

These problems are further often amplified because only a relativelysmall portion of the face-plate 34 of the known restraint engages thetire. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 2 of U.S. Pat. No. 5,312,213, thetire engages the face-plate 34 along a relatively narrow horizontallyextending portion of the flat front face of the face-plate 34.

It should also be appreciated that the vehicles may jump or hop theserestraints at a variety of different times such as during movement ofthe train including sudden stoppage of the auto-rack car or severedeceleration of the auto-rack car. Such instances can include suddenstopping for emergencies alone or in combination with slack action. Theamount of force on the vehicles being transported relative to theauto-rack car can cause the vehicles to hop or jump over the restraint,especially if the tire is engaged by the face-plate at a relatively lowpoint, if the restraint is spaced from the tire, if the face-plate is ata low position and spaced from the tire or even when engaged, does notfully engage the tire.

More importantly, during switching in a railroad yard, the auto-rackcars are coupled and decoupled with other railroad cars in differentfreight trains on a regular basis. During the coupling action, severejolts of up to 8 to 10 miles per hour can be incurred by the auto-rackcar even though regulations (and signs in the railroad yards and on therailroad cars) limit the speed to no more than 4 miles per hour. Thesejolts can cause extreme force on the vehicles relative to the railroadcars and, thus, cause the vehicles to jump or hop these restraintsespecially if the tire is engaged by the face-plate at a relatively lowpoint, if the restraint is spaced from the tire, and if the engagementwith the face-plate is along a narrow horizontally extending portion ofthe flat front face of the face-plate. When a vehicle hops or jumps arestraint, the vehicle may engage another vehicle in the auto-rack caror one or more end doors of the auto-rack car. There have beensignificant recorded instances of this type of damage to vehicles inauto-rack cars in railroad yards in recent years. As indicated above,such damage to the vehicles necessitates the replacement of the damagedpart or parts and potentially other parts of the vehicle. This damage isextremely expensive for vehicle manufacturers which charge the railroadsfor such damage.

This problem is compounded for vehicle manufacturers when the vehicledamaged is a specially ordered vehicle (instead of a stock vehicle) fora specific customer. The customer can wait one, two, three or moremonths for a specially ordered vehicle. If the specially ordered vehicleis damaged in transit, the customer may need to wait for anotherspecially ordered vehicle to be manufactured. This can harm the dealer'sand manufacturer's businesses.

The restraints are also often damaged when the vehicles jump therestraint or run into the restraints with sufficient forces. Therailroads have to replace these damaged restraints or have these damagedrestraints repaired or reconstructed. This causes additional expenses tobe incurred by the railroads. It should also be appreciated that theserestraints can often not be easily and quickly repaired in the field andthus have to be shipped to a repair facility.

It should thus be recognized that while the vehicle restraint systemdescribed above, which has been widely commercially implemented, securesmany vehicles being transported in auto-rack cars, in many instancesthis vehicle restraint system does not adequately protect the vehiclesor prevent the movement of the vehicles and thus prevent damage to thevehicles or the restraints themselves. The automobile industry and therailroad industry have sought improvements of this vehicle restraintsystem.

Various improvements have been proposed. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos.6,926,480, 7,004,696, 7,128,508, and 7,150,592 disclose supplementalrestraints which are configured to work with these restraints. Inanother example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,835,034 discloses a second restraintconfigured to work in conjunction with the above described restraints.One concern with such additional devices is that the loaders of thevehicles on the auto-rack cars need to position (when loading) andremove (when unloading) both the restraints and these additionaldevices. This takes additional time and effort during the loading andunloading process. Additionally, these multiple devices add more costand complications. In another example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,851,523 disclosesan alternatively configured restraint. This restraint has not beencommercialized. Thus, many attempts have been made to improve the abovedescribed restraint, but all of these attempts have not been successful.

Accordingly, there is a continuing need for an improved vehicle wheelrestraints which are easy to install and remove, is attachable to thegrating existing in the auto-rack cars, which holds the vehicles andspecifically the tire more securely, and which is easy to repair in thefield.

SUMMARY

The present disclosure solves the above problems by providing animproved vehicle wheel chock for an auto-rack car which more fullysecures a vehicle being transported in an auto-rack car and reduces themovement of the vehicles being transported in the auto-rack car. Thepresent disclosure contemplates that for most vehicles, one improvedvehicle wheel chock will be positioned adjacent to each tire of thevehicle being transported (i.e., four improved chocks in total to securethe vehicle). After a vehicle is loaded in an auto-rack car on thegratings, each improved chock is positioned directly adjacent to eachrespective tire of the vehicle and is attached to the grating whichextends under that tire. It should be appreciated that the improvedvehicle wheel chock of the present disclosure can be employed in othertransportation vehicles such as tractor trailers and shippingcontainers. It should also be appreciated that one or more of theimproved chocks disclosed herein can work with one or more of the priorknown chocks to secure a vehicle. For example, two improved chocks canbe employed with two known chocks to hold a vehicle. Thus, the use ofthe improved chocks disclosed herein can be phased in over time.

The present disclosure provides an improved wheel chocking system forrestraining road vehicles being transported on gratings disposed intransport containers such as auto-rack railroad cars. Each improvedvehicle wheel chock, which is sometimes referred to herein as theimproved chock, is similar to the vehicle wheel chock disclosed in U.S.Pat. Nos. 5,312,213 and 5,302,063, except that the improved chockdisclosed herein includes a substantially improved face-plate whichdramatically improves the performance of the vehicle wheel chockdisclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,312,213 and 5,302,063. Thus, each improvedchock of the present disclosure generally includes: (a) a base; (b) alocking assembly configured to engage and lock the base onto thegrating; (c) an improved face-plate directed to the tread surface of atire of its associated wheel to restrain the vehicle; (d) a loadtransferor; and (e) a lateral restrainer configured to prevent lateralshifting of the tire, associated wheel and vehicle positioned on thegrating.

Depending on the size of the vehicle and tires, in the lower position,for some vehicles in the intermediate position, and for some vehicles inthe highest position, the improved chock is configured to extend in thesafe zone between the tire and the adjacent fender, molding, trim orbumper and engage a significant portion of the tire while not touchingthe fender, molding, trim or bumper. This improved chock enables aloader to position the improved chock in better engagement with thetire. The improved face-plate is also substantially better suited todistribute the forces from the tire (and vehicle) over a greater surfacearea than the face-plate described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,312,213 and5,302,063.

Other objects, features and advantages of the present disclosure will beapparent from the following detailed disclosure, taken in conjunctionwith the accompanying sheets of drawings, wherein like referencenumerals refer to like parts.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an auto-rack railroad car configured totransport a plurality of vehicles.

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary side view of a vehicle and a side view of theprior art restraint in an auto-rack car illustrating a grating on whichthe vehicle rests, the restraint releasably attached to the grating, theface-plate of the restraint in its lowest position, and the face-plateof the restraint shown in phantom in the highest position which wouldinterfere with the fender of the vehicle.

FIG. 2A is a fragmentary side view of a vehicle and a side view of theprior art restraint in an auto-rack car illustrating the restraint inits lowest position, and the face-plate of the restraint shown inphantom in the highest position and outside of a safe zone for thevehicle.

FIG. 3 is a side view of a vehicle which has jumped the prior artrestraint illustrated in FIG. 2.

FIG. 3A is a perspective fragmentary view of a vehicle that hasliterally walked out of the prior art restraint illustrated in FIG. 2.

FIG. 3B is a fragmentary side view of a vehicle showing the safe zonesaround one of the tires of the vehicle.

FIG. 4 is a front perspective view of one embodiment of the improvedface-plate of the improved vehicle wheel chock of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 5 is a rear perspective view of the improved face-plate of FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 is a rear view of the improved face-plate of FIG. 4.

FIG. 7 is a front view of the improved face-plate of FIG. 4.

FIG. 8 is a top view of the improved face-plate of FIG. 4.

FIG. 9 is a bottom view of the improved face-plate of FIG. 4.

FIG. 10 is a right side view of the improved face-plate of FIG. 4.

FIG. 11 is a side view of the improved face-plate of FIG. 4 comparedwith the side view of the prior art face-plate.

FIG. 12 is a schematic fragmentary side view of a vehicle and a sideview of the improved vehicle wheel chock of the present disclosure, thechock on the grating, and the improved face-plate in its lowestposition.

FIG. 13 is a schematic fragmentary side view of a vehicle and a sideview of the improved vehicle wheel chock of the present disclosure, thechock on the grating, and the improved face-plate in the highestposition

FIG. 14 is a fragmentary side view of an alternative embodiment of theimproved face-plate of the present disclosure which includes analternatively configured stud.

FIG. 15 is a fragmentary side view of a further alternative embodimentof the improved face-plate of the present disclosure which includes afurther alternatively configured stud.

FIG. 16 is a fragmentary side view of a still further alternativeembodiment of the improved face-plate of the present disclosure whichincludes a still further alternatively configured stud.

FIG. 17 is a fragmentary side view of a yet further alternativeembodiment of the improved face-plate of the present disclosure whichincludes a yet further alternatively configured stud.

FIG. 18 is a front perspective view of another embodiment of theimproved face-plate of the improved vehicle wheel chock of the presentdisclosure, the improved face-plate including spaced-apart engagementpins secured in the body of the improved face-plate.

FIG. 19 is a rear perspective view of the improved face-plate of FIG.18.

FIG. 20 is a front perspective view of the improved face-plate of FIG.18, with one of the engagement pins shown removed from the body of theface-plate.

FIG. 21 is a perspective view of one embodiment of an engagement pin ofthe improved face-plate of FIG. 18.

FIG. 22 is a cross-sectional view of the improved face-plate of FIG. 18,illustrating the position of one of the engagement pins.

FIGS. 23A and 23B are schematic fragmentary cross-sectional views of theimproved vehicle wheel chock including the improved face-plate of FIG.18, and showing the position of one of the engagement pins prior to andafter a tire contacts the upper surface of the improved face-plate.

FIG. 24 is a front perspective view of another embodiment of theimproved face-plate of the improved vehicle wheel chock of the presentdisclosure, the improved face-plate including spaced-apart engagementpins molded into the body of the face-plate.

FIG. 25 is a rear perspective view of the improved face-plate of FIG.24.

FIG. 26 is a cross-sectional view of the improved face-plate of FIG. 24,illustrating the position of one of the engagement pins.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring now to the drawings and particularly to FIG. 1, a typicalauto-rack car 10 includes a frame 12 supported by trucks 14, each ofwhich have several wheels 16 which roll along railroad tracks 18. Theframe 12 supports two sidewalls 20 and a roof 22. The auto-rack car 10includes a pair of co-acting clamshell doors 24 and 26 mounted on eachend of the auto-rack car 10. The doors 24 and 26 are opened tofacilitate the loading and unloading of vehicles into and out of theauto-rack car 10 and are closed during transport or storage of thevehicles.

The sidewalls 20 include a series of steel vertical posts 28 which aremounted on, and extend upwardly from, the frame 12. The roof 22 ismounted on, and supported by, these vertical posts. The vertical postsare evenly spaced along the entire length of both sidewalls 20 of theauto-rack car 10. A plurality of rectangular galvanized steel side wallpanels 30 which extend horizontally and are vertically spaced apart aremounted between each pair of vertical posts 28. These side wall panelsare supported at their corners by brackets (not shown) that are suitablysecured to the vertical posts. The average side wall panel has amultiplicity of round sidewall panel holes 23. These side wall panelholes 23 provide the auto-rack car with natural light as well as properventilation. Proper ventilation prevents harm from the toxic vehiclefumes to the person or persons (i.e., loaders) loading or unloading thevehicles into or out of the auto-rack car.

The auto-rack car may be a tri-level car having first, second and thirdlevels. Normally, eighteen passenger vehicles can be transported in atri-level auto-rack car, six on each level. The auto-rack car can alsohave two levels for vehicles instead of three. The bi-level auto-rackcar has a lower level and an upper level. The bi-level auto-rack car isgenerally used to transport larger vehicles, such as vans, mini-vans,pickup trucks, four-by-four and cross-over vehicles. The bi-levelauto-rack car can usually transport twelve of these vehicles, six oneach level. The auto-rack car may also be a single-level car.

The present disclosure provides an improved wheel chocking system forrestraining road vehicles being transported on gratings disposed intransport containers such as this illustrated auto-rack railroad car 10.The improved vehicle wheel chocking system includes a plurality ofimproved vehicle wheel chocks. Each improved vehicle wheel chock issimilar to the vehicle wheel chock disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,312,213and 5,302,063, except that the chock includes an improved face-plate (asfurther described below) which dramatically improves the performance ofthe vehicle wheel chock disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,312,213 and5,302,063.

More specifically, FIGS. 4 to 10 illustrate one embodiment of theimproved face-plate of the improved vehicle wheel chock of the presentdisclosure. In this illustrated embodiment, the improved face-plate 100includes a body 102 and four spaced-apart arms 104, 106, 108, and 110integrally connected to and extending from the body 102. The body 102has a front side 112 and a back side 114. The configuration of theimproved face-plate 100 is substantially different from theconfiguration of the improved face-plate disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos.5,312,213 and 5,302,063. FIG. 11 generally illustrates a comparison ofthe substantially different profiles of the improved face-plate 100 ascompared to the face-plate disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,312,213 and5,302,063.

More specifically, in this illustrated embodiment, the improvedface-plate 100 in approximately the same height and approximately thesame width as the face-plate disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,312,213 and5,302,063; however, in this illustrated embodiment, certain portions ofthe improved face-plate 100 are substantially thicker than theface-plate disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,312,213 and 5,302,063 asgenerally illustrated by the dimensions shown in FIG. 11.

The top portion of the improved face-plate 100 and specifically theupper portion of the body 102 and the arms 104, 106, 108, and 110 definean upper curvature on the upper front side of the improved face-platefor more precise and greater tire engagement. More specifically, theupper curvature is defined by the upper portion of the back wall of thebody, the upper portion of the front wall of the body, the back walls ofthe arms, the front walls of the arms, and the top walls of the arms.

The bottom portion of the improved face-plate 100 and specifically thelower portion of the body 102 also defines a bottom curvature on thefront side of the improved face-plate 100 for more precise and greatertire engagement. More specifically, the bottom curvature is defined bythe bottom portion of the back wall of the body, the bottom portion ofthe front wall of the body, and the bottom wall of the body.

In one embodiment, the upper curvature and the lower curvature areapproximately the same or approximately mirror images of each other. Inone embodiment, the thickness of the central portion between the uppercurvature and the lower curvature is approximately the same as thethickness of the face-plate disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,312,213 and5,302,06. In another embodiment, the thickness of the central portionbetween the upper curvature and the lower curvature is greater than thethickness of the face-plate disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,312,213 and5,302,06. In another embodiment, the thickness of the central portionbetween the upper curvature and the lower curvature is less than thethickness of the face-plate disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,312,213 and5,302,06. It should be appreciated that in various embodiments the uppercurvature and the lower curvature form a radius in the front face of theface-plate 100 for enhanced engagement with a tire.

FIG. 11 shows the various thickness dimensions of one specificembodiment of the face-plate 100. It should be appreciated that thepresent disclosure is not limited to these exact dimensions.

In the illustrated embodiment, the front side of the improved face-plate100 includes laterally spaced-apart outwardly and longitudinallyextending reinforcing tire engaging members or ridges 150 a, 150 b, 150c, 150 d, 152, 154, 156, and 158. These longitudinally extending ridgesin combination with the upper and bottom curvatures of the improvedface-plate provide enhanced engagement with and gripping of the tire. Inthe illustrated embodiment, each of the ridges are semi-circular,although it should be appreciated that one or more of the ridges can beother suitable shapes. It should also be appreciated that the ridges 150a, 150 b, 150 c, and 150 d are spaced-apart respectively on the arms104, 106, 108, and 110. The ridges co-act to better engage the tire andto create an under cut with the tire to reduce the likelihood that thevehicle with lift up or jump relative to the chock. More specifically,the improved face-plate 100 with the upper curvature, lower curvature,and ridges enable the tire to compress further into the improvedface-plate and enables the improved chock to better restrain the vehiclefrom vertical lift. It should be appreciated that the ridges 150 a, 152,154, 156, and 158 are not taken in account in the dimensions shown inFIG. 11.

In the illustrated embodiment, as best seen in FIGS. 5 and 6, the backside of the body 102 of the improved face-plate 100 respectively includeindentations or slots 162, 164, 166, and 168 and reinforcing brackets,bars or ribs 170, 172, 174, 176, and 178 which provide structuralrigidity to the body 102. It should be appreciated that thisconstruction, in addition to providing structural rigidity for theface-plate, provides relief or cored-out areas for manufacture such asfor the molding process.

In the illustrated embodiment of FIGS. 4 to 13, the improved face-plate100 includes a pair of spaced apart non-hooking studs or legs 190 and192 located near a bottom back edge of the improved face-plate andextending from the back side of the body 102 of the improved face-plate100. The non-hooking studs or legs 190 and 192 project away from thebody and are configured to engage a respective pair of a series ofrectangular cavities in the front face of the front support member ofthe base of the chock as further discussed below. The non-hooking studsare configured to be respectively inserted into a respective pair of aseries of rectangular cavities in the front face of the support memberof the base of the chock without hooking onto the surfaces of thesupport member.

These free studs or legs 190 and 192 are of a substantially increasedthickness when compared to the hooks described in U.S. Pat. Nos.5,312,213 and 5,302,063. The hooks in these prior art patents areapproximately 5/16 inch×½ inch. In this illustrated embodiment, thestuds 190 and 192 are each approximately ½ inch×½ inch. In thisillustrated embodiment, the base and the end of each side wall of eachof the studs or legs 190 and 192 has a radius as opposed to the sharpedges of the hooks described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,312,213 and 5,302,063.FIG. 11 illustrates one embodiment of the studs and the radius of thebases of the studs. It should be appreciated that the present disclosureis not limited to studs each having bases or ends with such a radius.

These studs or legs 190 and 192 are made from the same strong materialsuch as the entire face-plate as discussed below. However, it should beappreciated that the studs or legs could be made from other suitablematerials. In this embodiment, the combination of the removal of thehooks, the increased thickness of the studs, the stronger material ofthe studs, and the configuration of the studs significantly improve thefunction of the face-plate.

It should be appreciated that in this embodiment, these studs or legs190 and 190 do not include hooks or hooking members such as the hooksdescribed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,312,213 and 5,302,063. U.S. Pat. Nos.5,312,213 and 5,302,063 expressly explain that the hooks provide animportant function in the dynamics of the control of the transportedvehicle upon an impact. Specifically, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,312,213 and5,302,063 explain that when the chock is impacted by a vehicle, thevehicle tends to rise through frictional contact between the tire andthe top of the face-plate, which causes pressure on the face-plate torotate, and that the upward hooks maintain the face-plate in engagement.

The elimination of the hooks from the face-plate in certain embodiments,as taught by the present disclosure provides the specific advantage ofeasier adjustability and less hook failure or breakage. The eliminationof these hooks and is directly contrary to the teachings of U.S. Pat.Nos. 5,312,213 and 5,302,063. However, it should be appreciated that asfurther disclosed below, the present disclosure is not limited tonon-hooking studs.

It should also be appreciated that the illustrated embodiment of theimproved face-plate of the present disclosure is a universal face-plateconfigured to be mounted on a left-hand chock or a right-hand chock.Specifically, as seen in FIGS. 4 to 11, the face-plate 100 includes: (a)openings 124 and 130 as described above which are each configured toreceive the upper portion of a U-shaped hinge pin (not shown); (b) hingepin slots 134 and 140 which are each configured to receive the lowerportion of a U-shaped hinge pin (not shown); and (c) roll pin holes 142,144, 146, and 148 which are each configured to received a roll pin (notshown) to securely engage the respective portion of the hinge pin (notshown). Thus, it should be appreciated that the face-plate of thepresent disclosure can receive the hinge pin on the right side or theleft side. This allows a single face-plate to be used on right-handchocks as well as on left-hand chocks. This facilitates easy replacementof new or broken face-plates (including in field repairs) and reducesthe number of improved face-plates which need to be kept in inventory.

The improved face-plate 100 illustrated in FIGS. 4 to 11 is thusconfigured to be mounted on a vehicle wheel chock such as the vehiclewheel chock generally schematically illustrated in FIGS. 12 and 13, andwhich is further illustrated and described in much greater detail inU.S. Pat. Nos. 5,312,213 and 5,302,063 which are incorporated herein byreference at least for their teaching of the chock components. Theimproved vehicle wheel chock is generally indicated by numeral 200. Theimproved chock 200 is configured to be attached to a grating or wiregrid 300 which has parallel spaced-apart steel wires crossing and weldedto parallel spaced-apart steel wires as also illustrated in more detailin U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,312,213 and 5,302,063. The improved chock 200 isconfigured to position and hold the improved face-plate 100 in differentpositions or heights to account for different size vehicles and tires assomewhat illustrated in FIGS. 12 and 13. The improved chock 200 isconfigured to be positioned adjacent to a tire 320 of a wheel 322 of avehicle such as the vehicle 330 partially shown in FIGS. 12 and 13. Theimproved chock 200 is configured to be attached to the grating or wiregrid 300 adjacent to the tire 320 such that the improved face-plate 100engages the outer surface of the tread of the tire as best shown in FIG.13.

The improved chock generally includes: (a) a base 202 having a pluralityof studs configured to fit into openings in the grating 300; (b) alocking assembly 204 configured to releaseably secure the chock 200 tothe grating 300; (c) a lateral restrainer such as a paddle-shaped member206 located on the left or right side of the improved chock 200 andconfigured to restrain lateral displacement and lateral shifting of thevehicle; (d) a series of clamping teeth or grate engagers 208 along thefront portion of the base 202 configured to grip the grating 300; and(e) a load transferor 210 pivotally attached to the back end of the base202. The base 202 includes a forward support member 212 angled away fromthe wheel. The improved chock disclosed herein also includes theimproved face-plate 100 secured to the top end of the load transferor bya hinge pin (not shown) and spring biased inwardly by a torsion springassembly (not shown). Specifically, the upper portion of the hinge pinextends through openings 124, 126, 128, and 130 respectively in arms104, 106, 108, and 110.

The improved chock 200 is used by positioning the improved chock 200 onthe grating or wire grid 300 adjacent a tire 320 and then hooking thefront grate engagers 208 onto the cross wires while the locking assembly204 is in the unlocked position. The locking assembly is then moved intothe locked position, such that the improved chock 200 is secured to thegrating.

The improved face-plate 100 which is attached to the load transferor canbe positioned at three distinct vertical positions and movably retainedalong the angled plane of the support member 212. The improvedface-plate 100 when attached to the load transferor is spring biasedinwardly by a torsion spring assembly as described in detail in U.S.Pat. Nos. 5,312,213 and 5,302,063. The improved face-plate 100 thus canbe positioned to abut the tire tread of the wheel at one of threedifferent heights relative to the wheel diameter. In the lower andintermediate positions, the improved chock keeps the improved face-plateclose to the tire and away from the fenders, body panels and trim of thevehicle.

The improved face-plate 100 is substantially better suited to distributethe forces from the tire (and vehicle) over a greater surface area thanthe face-plate described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,312,213 and 5,302,063.

In one embodiment, the improved face-plate of the present disclosure ismolded of a liquid thermoset plastics material primarily composed of aplural component liquid monomer mixture which can be molded by areaction injection molding (RIM) process. An example of such a productis produced by Metton America Corporation and sold under the trademarkMETTON. The improved face-plate can alternatively be made from othersuitable materials such as nylon, a glass filled nylon, aDicyclopentadiene, an Acrylonitrile-butadine-styrene, or apolycarbonate. It should further be appreciated that the improvedface-plate could be made from any one or more suitable materials,including other metals, plastics, ceramics and composite materials orcombinations thereof.

As mentioned above, it should be appreciated that the present disclosureis not limited to non-hooking studs. In alternative embodiments, thestuds include hooks or other engagement members or configurations. Forexample, FIGS. 14, 15, 16, and 17 generally show alternative face-plates500, 600, 700, and 800 with respectively, with alternative studconfigurations or studs 590, 690, 790, and 890 respectively.

It should be appreciated that the present disclosure thus provides invarious embodiments: a vehicle wheel chock for a vehicle on a gratingincluding: (a) a base having a plurality of studs configured to fit intoopenings in the grating; (b) a load transferor pivotally connected to arear end of the base; (c) a plurality of front clamping teeth attachedto a front end of the base; (d) a locking assembly configured to co-actwith the front clamping teeth to secure the base to the grating; (e) alateral restrainer configured to restrain lateral displacement andlateral shifting of the vehicle relative to the grating; and (f) aface-plate attached to the load transferor by a hinge pin and roll pins.The face-plate includes: (i) a body having a front side and a back side,(ii) a plurality of spaced-apart arms connected to and extending fromthe body, (iii) an upper portion of the body and the arms defining anupper curvature on an upper front side of the face-plate, said uppercurvature defined by the upper portion of the back walls of the body,the upper portion of the front walls of the body, the back walls of thearms, the front walls of the arms, and the top walls of the arms, (iv) alower portion of the body defining a bottom curvature on the front sideof the face-plate, the bottom curvature defined by the bottom portion ofthe back walls of the body, the bottom portion of the front walls of thebody, and the bottom walls of the body, (v) a plurality of laterallyspaced apart outwardly and longitudinally extending reinforcing tireengaging ridges, and (vi) a pair of spaced apart studs connected to andextending from the back side of the bottom of the body and configured toengage a respective pair of a series of rectangular cavities in a frontface of the load transfer member.

It should be appreciated that the improved face-plate of the presentdisclosure can be place on a new chock or can be used to replace aface-plate on an existing chock such as that the chock described in U.S.Pat. Nos. 5,312,213 and 5,302,063. More specifically, the improvedface-plate easily and quickly can replace the existing face-plate on thechock described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,312,213 and 5,302,063 by: (a)removing the two roll pins which retain the U-shaped hinge pin, (b)removing the hinge pin, (c) removing the old face-plate, (d) placing theimproved face-plate in the position of the old face-plate, (e)reinserting the hinge pin, and (f) reattaching the two roll pins.

It should be appreciated that the improved face-plate in certainembodiments is configured to break upon a designed amount of pressure orforce placed on the face-plate by a tire. This construction preventsdamage to the suspension of the vehicle which is difficult to detect.More specifically, in severe impact situations, if the chock (or aportion of the chock) does not break upon impact by the tire, the impactcan be absorbed by one or more of the components of the suspensionsystem of the vehicle, which can cause damage to those components. Suchdamage cannot be easily detected from outside manual inspection of thevehicle. In such cases, where the detection does not occur, the vehiclecan be sold in a damaged state and can lead to later problems with thepurchasers. Thus, in severe impact situations, vehicle manufacturersdesire the chock to give or break, which may cause damage to theexterior components of the vehicle (i.e., bumpers, fenders, etc.). Insuch situations, such damage can be readily detected and the vehiclescan be fixed prior to sale of the vehicle. Additionally, when anunloader sees damaged chocks, the unloader will know that the vehiclemust be carefully inspected for damage. If there is any damage, thecosts for the related repairs of the vehicles can be borne by theappropriate party according to the transportation agreements. Theconstruction disclosed herein of the chock also facilitates easy andcost efficient reconstruction of such broken chocks.

A further alternative embodiment of the improved face-plate of thepresent disclosure is shown in FIGS. 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23A, and 23B.Similar to the above embodiments, in this illustrated embodiment, thisface-plate 1100 includes: (a) a body 1102 having a front side 1112 and aback side 1114 a; and (b) four spaced-apart arms 1104, 1106, 1108, and1110 integrally connected to and extending from the body 1102. The backside of the body 1102 of the face-plate 1100 respectively includesindentations or slots 1162, 1164, 1166, and 1168 and reinforcingbrackets, bars or ribs 1170, 1172, 1174, 1176, and 1178 which providestructural rigidity to the body 1102. As with the above describedembodiments, this configuration provides structural rigidity for theface-plate 1100 and provides relief or cored-out areas for manufacturesuch as for the molding process.

As with the above described embodiments, this illustrated embodiment ofthe face-plate is universal in that it is configured to be mounted on aleft-hand chock or on a right-hand chock. Specifically, as seen in FIGS.18, 19, 20, and 22, the face-plate 1100 includes: (a) openings 1124,1126, 1128, and 1130 which are each configured to receive the upperportion of a U-shaped hinge pin (not shown); (b) hinge pin slots 1134and 1140 which are each configured to receive the lower portion of theU-shaped hinge pin (not shown); and (c) roll pin holes 1142, 1144, 1146,and 1148 which are each configured to receive a roll pin (not shown) tosecurely engage the respective portion of the hinge pin (not shown).Thus, it should be appreciated that this face-plate 1100 can receive thehinge pin (not shown) on the right side or the left side. This enablesthis face-plate 1100 to be used on right-hand chocks as well as onleft-hand chocks. This facilitates easy replacement of new or brokenface-plates (including in field repairs) and reduces the number offace-plates which need to be kept in inventory.

The top portion of the face-plate 1100 and specifically the upperportion of the body 1102 and the arms 1104, 1106, 1108, and 1110 definean upper curvature on the upper front side of the face-plate for moreprecise and greater tire engagement (as with the above describedembodiments). The upper curvature is defined by the upper portion of theback wall of the body, the upper portion of the front wall of the body,the back walls of the arms, the front walls of the arms, and the topwalls of the arms. The bottom portion of the face-plate 1100 andspecifically the lower portion of the body 1102 also defines a bottomcurvature on the front side of the face-plate 1100 for more precise andgreater tire engagement (as with the above described embodiments). Thebottom curvature is defined by the bottom portion of the back wall ofthe body, the bottom portion of the front wall of the body, and thebottom wall of the body. In this illustrated embodiment: (a) the uppercurvature and the lower curvature are approximately the same orapproximately mirror images of each other; (b) the thickness of thecentral portion between the upper curvature and the lower curvature isapproximately the same as the thickness of the face-plate disclosed inU.S. Pat. Nos. 5,312,213 and 5,302,06; and (c) the upper curvature andthe lower curvature form a radius in the front face of the face-plate1100 for enhanced engagement with a tire.

Similar to the above described embodiments, in this illustratedembodiment, the front side of the face-plate 1100 includes laterallyspaced-apart outwardly and longitudinally extending reinforcing tireengaging members or ridges 1150 a, 1150 b, 1150 c, 1150 d, 1152, 1154,1156, and 1158. These longitudinally extending ridges in combinationwith the upper and bottom curvatures of the face-plate 1100 provideenhanced engagement with and gripping of the tire. In this illustratedembodiment, each of the ridges are semi-circular, although it should beappreciated that one or more of the ridges can be other suitable shapes.It should also be appreciated that the ridges 1150 a, 1150 b, 1150 c,and 1150 d are spaced-apart respectively on the arms 1104, 1106, 1108,and 1110. As described in relation to the above embodiments: (a) theridges co-act to better engage the tire and to create an under cut withthe tire to reduce the likelihood that the vehicle with lift up or jumprelative to the chock; and (b) the face-plate with the upper curvature,lower curvature, and ridges enables the tire to compress further intothe face-plate and enables the improved chock with this face-plate tobetter restrain the vehicle from vertical lift.

In this embodiment, the face-plate 1100 (except for the engagement pinsas discussed below) is molded of a liquid thermoset plastics materialprimarily composed of a plural component liquid monomer mixture whichcan be molded by a reaction injection molding (RIM) process. An exampleof such a product is produced by Metton America Corporation and soldunder the trademark METTON. This face-plate 1100 (except for theengagement pins) can alternatively be made from other suitable materialssuch as nylon, a glass filled nylon, a Dicyclopentadiene, anAcrylonitrile-butadine-styrene, or a polycarbonate. It should further beappreciated that this face-plate 1100 (except for the engagement pins)could be made from any one or more suitable materials, including othermetals, plastics, ceramics and composite materials or combinationsthereof.

In this illustrated embodiment, the bottom section of the body 1102 ofthe face-plate 1100 includes a pair of spaced apart pin receivingapertures 1187 and 1189 configured to respectively receive engagementpins 1191 and 1193. The engagement pins 1191 and 1193 are configured toextend out of the back side of the body 1102 of the face-plate 1100 asbest shown in FIGS. 19, 22, 23A and 23B. The engagement pins 1191 and1193 project away from the back side 1114 of the body and are configuredto engage any one of the three sets of rectangular cavities in the frontface of the front support member of the base of the chock as furtherdiscussed below. These engagement pins 1191 and 1193 are made from asubstantially stronger than the molded in hooks described in U.S. Pat.Nos. 5,312,213 and 5,302,063. These engagement pins 1191 and 1193 aremade from a suitably strong material such as stainless steel. It shouldbe appreciated that the engagement pins could be made from othersuitably strong materials besides stainless steel. The engagement pins1191 and 1193 are of a substantially different configuration than andfunction differently than the hooks described in those patents, andprovide substantially better engagement with the forward support memberof the chock as further described below. The addition of theseengagement pins significantly improve the function of the face-plate andthe chock as further described below.

In this illustrated embodiment, the engagement pins 1191 and 1193 areidentical, and thus engagement pin 1193 will be described in more detailbelow as an example of the engagement pins. However, it should beappreciated that the engagement pins do not have to be identical inaccordance with the present invention. Engagement pin 1193, as bestshown in FIGS. 20, 21, 23A, and 23B, includes a mounting head 1400 andan engagement leg 1402 integrally connected to and extending from themounting head 1400. The mounting head 1400 is configured to bepositioned in the aperture in the body 1102 of the face-plate 1100 (asbest shown in FIG. 22) and to be secured by one or more fasteningmechanisms or attachment members such as roll pins (such as pin 1403 inFIG. 22). The mounting head 1400 accordingly includes one or more pinreceipt holes (such as hole 1401) configured to receive the attachmentmembers. It should be appreciated that the mounting head 1400 can besecured in the body in any suitable manner. It should also beappreciated that the mounting head can be configured differently forsecure attachment in and to the body 1102 of the face-plate 1100. Theengagement leg 1402 includes an attachment end 1404 attached to themounting head 1400 and an opposite free end 1406. The engagement leg1402 further defines an engagement slot 1408 in the upper surface of theengagement leg 1402 between the attachment end 1404 and the oppositefree end 1406; and more specifically includes a bottom engagement wall1410, an inner engagement wall 1412, and an outer engagement wall 1414which define the engagement slot 1408. These walls of the engagementslot 1408 are configured to better engage the forward support member ofthe chock as further described below and as illustrated in FIGS. 23A and23B. It should be appreciated that after the engagement pins are placedin the body of the face plate, suitable caps (not shown) may be placedin the front portions of the apertures.

As with the above embodiments, the face-plate 1100 is configured to bemounted on a vehicle wheel chock such as the vehicle wheel chockgenerally partially schematically illustrated in FIGS. 23A and 23B, andwhich is further illustrated and described in much greater detail inU.S. Pat. Nos. 5,312,213 and 5,302,063. In FIGS. 23A and 23B, thisexample vehicle wheel chock is generally indicated by numeral 1200. Thechock 1200 is configured to be attached to a grating or wire grid 300which has parallel spaced-apart steel wires crossing and welded toparallel spaced-apart steel wires as also illustrated in more detail inU.S. Pat. Nos. 5,312,213 and 5,302,063. The chock 1200 is configured toposition and hold the face-plate 1100 in different positions or heightsto account for different size vehicles and tires as somewhat illustratedin FIGS. 23A and 23B. The chock 1200 is configured to be positionedadjacent to a tire 320 of a wheel of a vehicle (not shown). The chock1200 is configured to be attached to the grating or wire grid 300adjacent to the tire 320 such that the face-plate 1100 engages the outersurface of the tread of the tire 320.

The chock 1200 with this face-plate 1100 thus generally includes: (a) abase 1212 having a plurality of studs (not shown) configured to fit intoopenings in the grating; (b) a locking assembly (not shown) configuredto releaseably secure the chock to the grating; (c) a lateral restrainer(not shown) such as a paddle-shaped member located on the left or rightside of the improved chock and configured to restrain lateraldisplacement and lateral shifting of the vehicle; (d) a series ofclamping teeth or grate engagers 1219 along the front portion of thebase configured to grip the grating; and (e) a load transferor 1210pivotally attached to the back end of the base 1212. The base 1212includes a forward support member 1212 a angled away from the wheel.This chock 1200 also includes the face-plate 1100 secured to the top endof the load transferor 1210 by a hinge pin (not shown) and spring biasedinwardly by a torsion spring assembly (not shown). Specifically, theupper portion of the hinge pin (not shown) extends through openings1124, 1126, 1128, and 1130 respectively in arms 1104, 1106, 1108, and1110 as described above. As with the above described embodiments, thischock is used by positioning the chock on the grating or wire gridadjacent a tire and then hooking the front grate engagers onto the crosswires while the locking assembly is in the unlocked position. Thelocking assembly is then moved into the locked position, such that thechock is secured to the grating.

As illustrated in FIGS. 23A and 23B, when the chock 1200 with theface-plate 1100 is impacted by a vehicle, the vehicle tends to risethrough frictional contact between the tire and the top of theface-plate 1100, which causes pressure on the face-plate to rotateupwardly and causes the engagement pins 1191 and 1193 to engage and lockonto the forward support member 1212 a as shown in FIG. 23B. Morespecifically, in resting position shown in FIG. 23A, the engagement pinis positioned in the cavity or hole 1213 defined by the forward supportmember 1212 a of the base 1212, but does not actively engage the portionof the forward support member above the engagement slot 1408. When atire causes the face-plate 1100 to rotate, the engagement pin 1191 movesupwardly and outwardly (i.e., toward the tire) as shown in FIG. 23B toengage that portion of the forward support member 1212 a to preventfurther rotation of the face-plate 1100. This provides a more secureengagement with the forward support member 1212 a and better overallengagement with tire 320, which in turn enables the chock with this faceplate to withstand substantially greater impact forces from the tirewithout breaking and while still restraining the vehicle.

It should be appreciated that the face-plate 1100 which is attached tothe load transferor 1210 can be positioned at three distinct verticalpositions and movably retained along the angled plane of the forwardsupport member 1212 a. The face-plate 1100, when attached to the loadtransferor, is spring biased inwardly by a torsion spring assembly (asdescribed in detail in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,312,213 and 5,302,063). Theface-plate 1100 thus can be positioned to abut the tire tread of thewheel at one of three different heights relative to the wheel diameterwhere the engagement pins are disposed in the respective set of cavitiesor holes, (1211, 1213, or 1215) in the member 1212 a. The face-plate1100 is thus substantially better suited to distribute the forces fromthe tire (and vehicle) over a greater surface area than the face-platedescribed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,312,213 and 5,302,063.

Another alternative embodiment of the improved face-plate of the presentdisclosure is shown in FIGS. 24, 25, and 26. Similar to the aboveembodiments, in this illustrated embodiment, this face-plate 2100includes: (a) a body 2102 having a front side 2112 and a back side 2114a; and (b) four spaced-apart arms 2104, 2106, 2108, and 2110 integrallyconnected to and extending from the body 2102. The back side of the body2102 of the face-plate 2100 respectively includes indentations or slots2162, 2164, 2166, and 2168 and reinforcing brackets, bars or ribs 2170,2172, 2174, 2176, and 2178 which provide structural rigidity to the body2102. As with the above described embodiments, this configurationprovides structural rigidity for the face-plate 2100 and provides reliefor cored-out areas for manufacture such as for the molding process.

As with the above described embodiments, this illustrated embodiment ofthe face-plate is universal in that it is configured to be mounted on aleft-hand chock or on a right-hand chock. The face-plate 2100 includes:(a) openings 2124, 2126, 2128, and 2130 which are each configured toreceive the upper portion of a U-shaped hinge pin (not shown); (b) hingepin slots 2134 and 2140 which are each configured to receive the lowerportion of the U-shaped hinge pin (not shown); and (c) roll pin holes2142, 2144, 2146, and 2148 which are each configured to receive a rollpin (not shown) to securely engage the respective portion of the hingepin (not shown). Thus, it should be appreciated that this face-plate2100 can receive the hinge pin (not shown) on the right side or the leftside. This enables this face-plate 2100 to be used on right-hand chocksas well as on left-hand chocks. This facilitates easy replacement of newor broken face-plates (including in field repairs) and reduces thenumber of face-plates which need to be kept in inventory.

The top portion of the face-plate 2100 and specifically the upperportion of the body 2102 and the arms 2104, 2106, 2108, and 2110 definean upper curvature on the upper front side of the face-plate for moreprecise and greater tire engagement (as with the above describedembodiments). The upper curvature is defined by the upper portion of theback wall of the body, the upper portion of the front wall of the body,the back walls of the arms, the front walls of the arms, and the topwalls of the arms. The bottom portion of the face-plate 2100 andspecifically the lower portion of the body 2102 also defines a bottomcurvature on the front side of the face-plate 2100 for more precise andgreater tire engagement (as with the above described embodiments). Thebottom curvature is defined by the bottom portion of the back wall ofthe body, the bottom portion of the front wall of the body, and thebottom wall of the body. In this illustrated embodiment: (a) the uppercurvature and the lower curvature are approximately the same orapproximately mirror images of each other; (b) the thickness of thecentral portion between the upper curvature and the lower curvature isapproximately the same as the thickness of the face-plate disclosed inU.S. Pat. Nos. 5,312,213 and 5,302,06; and (c) the upper curvature andthe lower curvature form a radius in the front face of the face-plate2100 for enhanced engagement with a tire.

Similar to the above described embodiments, in this illustratedembodiment, the front side of the face-plate 2100 includes laterallyspaced-apart outwardly and longitudinally extending reinforcing tireengaging members or ridges 2150 a, 2150 b, 2150 c, 2150 d, 2152, 2154,2156, and 2158. It should be appreciated that in this embodiment, ridge2158 extends along the entire width of face-plate 2100. Theselongitudinally extending ridges in combination with the upper and bottomcurvatures of the face-plate 2100 provide enhanced engagement with andgripping of the tire. In this illustrated embodiment, each of the ridgesare semi-circular, although it should be appreciated that one or more ofthe ridges can be other suitable shapes. It should also be appreciatedthat the ridges 2150 a, 2150 b, 2150 c, and 2150 d are spaced-apartrespectively on the arms 2104, 2106, 2108, and 2110. As described inrelation to the above embodiments: (a) the ridges co-act to betterengage the tire and to create an under cut with the tire to reduce thelikelihood that the vehicle with lift up or jump relative to the chock;and (b) the face-plate with the upper curvature, lower curvature, andridges enables the tire to compress further into the face-plate andenables the improved chock with this face-plate to better restrain thevehicle from vertical lift.

In this illustrated embodiment, the face-plate 2100 is molded of aliquid thermoset plastics material primarily composed of a pluralcomponent liquid monomer mixture which can be molded by a reactioninjection molding (RIM) process and the engagement pins are placed inthe mold for the molding process. An example of such a product isproduced by Metton America Corporation and sold under the trademarkMETTON. This face-plate 2100 (except for the engagement pins) canalternatively be made from other suitable materials such as nylon, aglass filled nylon, a Dicyclopentadiene, anAcrylonitrile-butadine-styrene, or a polycarbonate. It should further beappreciated that this face-plate 2100 (except for the engagement pins)could be made from any one or more suitable materials, including othermetals, plastics, ceramics and composite materials or combinationsthereof.

In this illustrated embodiment, the pair of spaced apart engagement pins2191 and 2193 are located at spaced apart positions at the bottom of theface-plate 2100 and extend from the back side 2114 of the body 2102 ofthe face-plate 2100 as best shown in FIGS. 25 and 26. The engagementpins 2191 and 2193 project away from the back of the body and areconfigured to engage a respective pair of a series of rectangularcavities in the front face of the front support member of the base ofthe chock as discussed above. These engagement pins 2191 and 2193 areconfigured to be attached to the body when the body is formed or molded.In this illustrated embodiment, the mounting head 2400 of the engagementpin is shown with a different configuration than the engagement pins1191 and 1193. As illustrated in phantom in FIG. 26, this head 2400includes a transversely expending securement member 2401 which assistsin securing the molded in engagement pin 2193 in the body of the of theface-plate 2100. It should be appreciated that the shape of the mountinghead can be any suitable shape which will facilitate the secure moldingof the engagement pin in the body. In this illustrated embodiment, theseengagement pins 2191 and 2193 are made from a suitably strong materialsuch as stainless steel. It should be appreciated that the engagementpins could be made from other suitably strong materials besidesstainless steel. Except for how these engagement pins 2191 and 2193 aremolded into the body of the face-plate, they function identical to theengagement pins 1191 and 1193 described above.

It will be understood that modifications and variations may be effectedwithout departing from the scope of the novel concepts of the presentinvention, and it is understood that this application is to be limitedonly by the scope of the claims.

1. A vehicle wheel chock for a vehicle on a grating, said vehicle wheel chock comprising: a base having a plurality of studs configured to fit into openings in the grating, said base including a forward support member; a load transferor pivotally connected to a rear end of the base; a plurality of front clamping teeth attached to a front end of the base; a locking assembly configured to co-act with the front clamping teeth to secure the base to the grating; a lateral restrainer configured to restrain lateral displacement and lateral shifting of the vehicle relative to the grating; and a face-plate attached to the load transferor by a hinge pin, said face-plate including: a body having a front side and a back side, a plurality of spaced-apart arms connected to and extending from the body, an upper portion of the body and the arms defining an upper curvature on an upper front side of the face-plate, a lower portion of the body defining a bottom curvature on the front side of the face-plate, said body including a plurality of laterally spaced apart outwardly and longitudinally extending reinforcing tire engaging ridges, and a plurality of spaced apart engagement pins mounted in and extending from the back side of the bottom of the body and configured to be inserted into cavities in a front face of the forward support member, each said engagement pin including a mounting head and an engagement leg connected to and extending from the mounting head, said engagement leg includes an attachment end attached to the mounting head and an opposite free end, said engagement leg including a bottom engagement wall, an inner engagement wall, and an outer engagement wall which define an engagement slot between the attachment end and the opposite free end.
 2. The vehicle wheel chock of claim 1, wherein for each engagement pin, the mounting head defines at least one pin receipt hole, each pin receipt hole configured to receive an attachment pin.
 3. The vehicle wheel chock of claim 1, wherein each engagement pin is made from stainless steel.
 4. The vehicle wheel chock of claim 1, wherein each engagement pin is molded into the body of the face-plate.
 5. The vehicle wheel chock of claim 1, which defines a plurality of openings configured to receive the upper portion of a U-shaped hinge pin, and a plurality of hinge pin slots configured to receive a lower portion of the U-shaped hinge pin.
 6. The vehicle wheel chock of claim 5, wherein the plurality of openings extend through the arms of the face-plate, and wherein the plurality of hinge pin slots are on opposite ends of the body of the face-plate.
 7. The vehicle wheel chock of claim 5, wherein the arms include a plurality of outwardly and longitudinally extending reinforcing tire engaging ridges.
 8. A vehicle wheel chock face-plate for a vehicle wheel chock for a vehicle on a grating, said vehicle wheel chock including (a) a base having a plurality of studs configured to fit into openings in the grating, (b) a load transferor pivotally connected to a rear end of the base, (c) a plurality of front clamping teeth attached to a front end of the base, (d) a locking assembly configured to co-act with the front clamping teeth to secure the base to the grating, and (e) a lateral restrainer configured to restrain lateral displacement and lateral shifting of the vehicle relative to the grating, said vehicle wheel chock face-plate comprising: a body having a front side and a back side; a plurality of spaced-apart arms connected to and extending from the body; an upper portion of the body and the arms defining an upper curvature on an upper front side of the face-plate; a lower portion of the body defining a bottom curvature on the front side of the face-plate; said body including a plurality of laterally spaced apart outwardly and longitudinally extending reinforcing tire engaging ridges; and a plurality of spaced apart engagement pins mounted in and extending from the back side of the bottom of the body and configured to be inserted into cavities in a front face of the forward support member, each said engagement pin including a mounting head and an engagement leg connected to and extending from the mounting head, said engagement leg includes an attachment end attached to the mounting head and an opposite free end, said engagement leg including a bottom engagement wall, an inner engagement wall, and an outer engagement wall which define an engagement slot between the attachment end and the opposite free end.
 9. The vehicle wheel chock face-plate of claim 8, wherein for each engagement pin, the mounting head defines at least one pin receipt hole, each pin receipt hole configured to receive an attachment pin.
 10. The vehicle wheel chock face-plate of claim 8, wherein each engagement pin is made from stainless steel.
 11. The vehicle wheel chock face-plate of claim 8, wherein each engagement pin is molded into the body of the face-plate.
 12. The vehicle wheel chock face-plate of claim 8, which defines a plurality of openings configured to receive the upper portion of a U-shaped hinge pin, and a plurality of hinge pin slots configured to receive a lower portion of the U-shaped hinge pin.
 13. The vehicle wheel chock face-plate of claim 12, wherein the plurality of openings extend through the arms, and wherein the plurality of hinge pin slots are on opposite ends of the body of the face-plate.
 14. The vehicle wheel chock face-plate of claim 12, wherein the arms include a plurality of outwardly and longitudinally extending reinforcing tire engaging ridges. 